Baltimore, MD ( Jan. 24, 2013) - Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced today that former University of Maryland, Baltimore County employee Charlotte Alexis Robinson, 50, of Baltimore pleaded guilty in Baltimore County Circuit Court to one count of felony theft. Judge Mickey J. Norman imposed a five-year suspended sentence and ordered Robinson to make restitution in the amount of $6,693 and complete 100 hours of community service.

"When public employees abuse taxpayer money, it erodes the public trust in government," said Attorney General Gansler. "This conviction and sentence will ensure the reimbursement of all public funds and hopefully serve as an example that defrauding taxpayers will not go unpunished."

Between April 2008 and December 2011, while working in UMBC's Department of Modern Languages & Linguistics, Robinson made numerous unauthorized personal purchases using her state-issued corporate purchasing card. An investigation revealed that Robinson routinely created fraudulent invoices and receipts to cover up her scheme. Many of the items bought were recovered from her home during the execution of a search warrant. The investigation revealed that Robinson purchased electronics, video games, books and American Express and Nordstrom gift cards worth several thousand dollars.

The scheme was originally uncovered by the Office of Legislative Audits, which referred the matter to the UMBC Police Department. The investigation was conducted by the Attorney General's Criminal Division and the Maryland State Police. In making the announcement today, Attorney General Gansler thanked Assistant Attorney General Megan Davey Limarzi, Maryland State Police Cpl. Sha Brown and Investigative Auditor Steve Lesniewski for their work on the case.